Video sharing for shoe lovers

Whether it’s board riders or hotel seekers being targeted, there’s no doubt that the verticalization of video sites continues apace. The latest evidence: Shoetube, a new video-sharing site for those obsessed with shoes. Launched about two weeks ago by Massachusetts-based Powderhouse Productions, Shoetube aims to use online video and social community to connect women through their passion for shoes. The free site features original video programs, user-generated videos and photos, and sponsor-created content, along with professionally written blogs, forums and articles on fashion news and trends. Among the site’s regular video programs, for example, are Behind the Boot, which provides access to the makers and shakers of the shoe world; Real or Deal, a studio show daring viewers to guess which shoes are from high-end designers and which are knockoffs; and Walk on By, in which Shoetube.tv hosts ask passersby nationwide, “Where’d you get those shoes?” Coming soon is a Boutiques section, which will showcase videos and photos, blogs, contests, polls, and shoe deals from well-known shoe companies. Ad-supported Shoetube provides sponsors with promotional opportunities through video ad overlays, boutique microsites, banners, contests and polling efforts. Through a collaboration with Nine West, for example, Shoetube is helping to promote the shoe brand’s 30th anniversary and the launch of its fall 2008 boot line; to celebrate Shoetube’s launch, meanwhile, shoe brand daniblack is offering a USD 1,000 sweepstakes prize to a Shoetube.tv registrant. From aardvark fanciers to zwieback aficionados, it’s a niche-filled world out there, full of opportunities for topic-specific video sites. And when there’s the likes of Twistage (which Shoetube used) and Magnify at the ready for help on the technical end, there’s no reason not to pick a niche and get to work! Spotted by: Amy Leung